The Resurrection and the Life — John 10-11

0:00 Good morning. Good morning. Morning. Morning. Morning.

0:06 Am I on? Okay. Let's just have a word of prayer. Father, thank you for this resurrection Sunday in which we can come and be in your presence. Lord, we're so thankful for the sacrifice that you made in that cross on Calvary so many years ago.

0:29 Just pray that in the next few moments, our hearts would be turned toward you. Pray that you would speak through your word this morning. Lord, if there's anything I say that is not of you, I pray that it will quickly be forgotten. Pray that the spirit would apply the scriptures to our souls today. In the name of Jesus, we pray.

0:49 Amen. I want to start by thanking everybody for your kindness and your generosity and your prayers for Megan and I as we are in now the third week of raising little Paul David. So, and thank you for the food. Oh my goodness. The meals have been so good.

1:06 I said to my wife, we need to have babies more often so that we can get some more of these goodies. I got it. We got enough. We got enough food for to feed an army, but that's okay. And, I don't know, so, I don't know, as a new father, I don't know what your experience has been with raising children, but in my experience, living with an infant in my house is kind of like living with an eight pound bomb.

1:33 And what I mean by that is, this thing could go off at any minute with no warning. Right? One minute, he is in my arms cuddling and being all cozy, and the next minute, is throwing a carnal fit in my ear. And sometimes at night, I can hear the bomb ticking. It sounds like this.

1:59 And I know the bomb is about to go off. Right? So I tuck my head under the pillow. I think, no. No.

2:05 No. Lord, let me sleep. But but we are glad to have him in our family, and we're glad to have you this morning on Easter Sunday here at Westlake Bible Fellowship. If you've been attending the past few weeks, you know that we are going through a sermon series on the book of Genesis but Denzel did a great job last week with Genesis four and five and I think that I think John is going to speak on Genesis six next week. So, have been given special dispensation by the elders to to take a a little foray into a different part of scripture today.

2:40 So, today we're going to talk about the resurrection. What better topic could there be for Easter morning? Scripture passage today comes from the eleventh chapter of the Gospel of John. This is a familiar story to many of you, I am sure. The raising of Lazarus from the dead.

3:03 And we're going start with John chapter 11 beginning in verse one. Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lays sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair. So the sister sent word to Jesus, saying, Lord, the one you love is sick.

3:35 When he heard this, Jesus said, this sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's son may be glorified through it. Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days. And then he said to his disciples, let us go back to Judea.

3:59 May God bless our understanding of the reading of his word this morning, which is inspired. And not only is it inspired but it is inerrant is without error and it is infallible. The word of god. I have three points to this morning's message. If you like to take notes and they all start with the letter P.

4:19 There is the plan. The plan of God and how it might look quite different from the plan that we would expect. Second, we'll talk about the providence of God, that all of life's contingencies are under his control. And the third point is going to be the power of God in which we will discover that even death itself has been conquered by Jesus, our savior. So, we start with the plan.

5:09 Because if we are going to trust in Jesus, the one area we had better be able to trust him with is with death. There is a sense in which if I cannot trust Jesus in the matter of my death, it doesn't really matter how many blind people he can make see or how much water he can turn into wine or how many people he can feed with bread and fishies. Right? I have to be able to trust him with the eternal things of life. So, I don't know how many of you follow college basketball.

5:46 Last night, my Spartans went down, utter defeat. That's beside the point. But the University of Kentucky Wildcats went into last night's game with 38 victories and zero losses. Wow, 38 and o. And they got beat by the Wisconsin Badgers.

6:07 But they got beat. Thirty eight and zero. They were going to become, if they had won two more games, the first undefeated team since the Indiana Hoosiers in 1976. But they got defeated. And after the game, a couple of the players from the University of Kentucky made some comments that I thought were very appropriate for this morning's message.

6:26 The first one was, we wanted to win the championship and we didn't, so the whole season was a waste. That's it. They won 38 ball games and then they lost one and the whole season was a waste. We didn't care about the record. We just wanted the trophy at the end.

6:51 You know, I actually thought that last one was pretty remarkable. It doesn't matter what your record is in life if you don't get the trophy at the end. It doesn't matter if you go 38 and o in your life and you you you just win every victory. Your life is wonderful, but at the end, you're on the wrong side. You're on the losing team.

7:12 Right? So, thought that was interesting. I want to have the confidence in Christ to know at the end of the day that when I pass through death's door, that Jesus is going to be there with me. As Paul says in second Corinthians, when our heavenly... When our earthly tabernacle is destroyed, we know we have a new home not made with hands eternal in the heavens.

7:38 That's why this issue of Lazarus's death is important to me. It is a convincing miracle that demonstrates Christ's power over death and also foreshadows his own resurrection. Now, Lazarus was from the village of Bethany. Now, this would have been on the main road into Jerusalem. And this account takes place right before Passover.

8:00 So, this highway into Jerusalem would have been packed with travelers. So, lots of people would have heard about this account of the raising of Lazarus. In some sense, Christ's last public miracle would have been the most well publicized given the amount of people who are passing Bethany at the time. And that kind of ties in with the whole point of the Gospel of John. What was the point of John's Gospel?

8:27 It was written so that you may believe, right? That we may believe and that we might receive eternal life. And believing in Jesus, that's going to be the point of this morning's message, right? If you take nothing else away from it, the point of the morning message is that Jesus himself is the resurrection and life. Now, don't know a whole lot about Lazarus prior to this, other than he was a brother of Mary and Martha.

8:52 He was a good friend of Jesus. In fact, the scriptures tell us that Jesus loved Lazarus and despite that, Lazarus still dies. So, apparently, the fact that god loves you is not going to save you from dying. Everybody's going to die and everybody's going to pass into eternity. And also, Jesus loves Mary and Martha.

9:14 Now, sisters are concerned about their brother's health, of course. They're concerned about whether he lives or dies. But we also have to consider that at this time, as two unmarried women, if Lazarus is to die, there is probably nobody else in Bethany that is able to take care of Mary and Martha. And yet when Jesus hears all this, when he hears the news from the messenger, the fellow that you love is sick, he does not hurry to Bethany. Verse six, when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.

9:49 Jesus is seemingly in no hurry to save his dying friend. He's in no hurry to help these troubled sisters. Now, in his words, he is kind of encouraging. He says, this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God that the Son of God might be glorified. But his actions, to me, are somewhat confusing.

10:12 The sickness will not end in death, but he doesn't he doesn't do anything about it. He hangs around for two more days, and then it's a two day journey into Bethany from there. So this is plenty of time for Lazarus not only to be die, but also to to be buried. And after two days, he says to his disciples, he says to his disciples in verse seven, let us go back to Judea. But a rabbi, they said, a short while ago, the Jews there trying to stone you, Tried to stone you.

10:54 So, we better stone you. The rabbi, they said, a short while ago, the Jews there tried to stone you and yet you are going back. Jesus answered, are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world's light. It is when a person walks at night that they stumble for they have no light.

11:16 So, the disciples are saying to Jesus, in effect, you don't want to go back. You don't want to go back to Judea because they tried to kill you there. That's kind of committing suicide, buddy. And not only that, but if you look back at the end of chapter 10, right at the end of chapter 10, starting maybe in verse 40, he went away beyond Jordan into the place where John first baptized and stayed there. And many people came unto him and said, John did no miracles, but this, all the things that John spoke of this man were true, and many believed on him there.

11:53 So I can imagine, you know, I can imagine disciples are thinking to themselves, here we are in this region beyond the Jordan, and we're having some effective ministry. Right? People are coming to Christ. They are receiving what you have to say. They are believing in you.

12:07 They are turning from their sins. Why do you want to leave here? You want to go back to Judea? Sometimes, I think the call of God means that we have to look beyond the visible circumstances of ministry. Right?

12:25 Sometimes, things could be seemingly going really well and God says, it's time to move. And sometimes things could be seeming as if they are dry and we are producing no fruit and there is no peace and god is saying, you gotta stay there. Because the in the economy of the kingdom of heaven, visible evidence is not always a sure sign that the spirit is moving. What did Jesus say about the spirit? The spirit is like the the wind.

12:57 You don't know where it's coming from and you don't know where it's going. But when the time is right and only then, god is going to be on the move. And Jesus is confident. He says he's confident. He can go back into Judea.

13:11 He's going to be protected by his father until his earthly work is done. So, he says to the disciples in verse nine, you know, to walk in god's will, that's what he means by to walk in the daylight. If you're walking in the will of god, that is not dangerous. What's actually dangerous is to walk in the nighttime. It is to be walking outside of the will of god.

13:30 So, likewise, if we are walking in the will of god, we should be walking confidently in that. We shouldn't be timid, uncertain, hesitant. You know, Christians, sometimes, we're so afraid of saying things that we know are true. We're so afraid of doing things for God. I'm timid about my faith.

13:47 Jesus says, If you're walking in the light, you've got to walk with confidence. We're going to be fine. Verse 11, After he had said this, he went on to tell them, Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to wake him up. His disciples replied, Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better. I mean, that kind of makes some sense, right?

14:09 Jesus had been speaking, however, of His death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep. So, he told them plainly, Lazarus is dead. And for your sake, I am glad I was not there so that you may believe, but let us go to him. I think that's a remarkable statement. I am glad I was not there.

14:33 Are you kidding me? So here we got Lazarus is dead and Jesus is glad. Mary and Martha are grieving that Jesus is glad. The disciples are filled with fear but Jesus says, I am glad I was not there. Why didn't Jesus just respond with some swift action that would have healed Lazarus, saved Mary and Martha from their tears?

14:59 I mean, why didn't He heal Lazarus from a distance like He did with the centurion servant? He didn't have to actually go to Bethany to heal the guy. He could have just spoken the word. Every time I speak, am required to quote from Spurgeon. Christ is not glad because of sorrow, but on account of the result of it.

15:25 He knows temporary trials lead to greater faith and he places such a high value on faith, he will not save us from those trials by which our faith is strengthened. Jesus puts a premium on our faith, even if it means going through the trials. Take a look with me at one Peter four. We're going come back to Lazarus in a minute. One Peter four twelve-thirteen.

16:11 Chapter four verse 12. Beloved, do not think it's strange when you encounter the fiery trials, as if something strange has happened to you. But rejoice in that you are partakers of Christ's sufferings, that when his glory shall be revealed, you may be made glad also with exceeding joy. This is quite different than a movement which is growing in popularity among American churches, which says that God actually wants you to be happy and healthy and wealthy. It is particularly popular amongst pastors of mega churches who are by the way, healthy and wealthy.

16:56 But scripture tells us that God's plans for us do not revolve around health or wealth or even happiness. Jesus certainly is touched by our infirmities. He shares in our sorrow, but he is not always going to shield us from earthly trials, if those trials are meant to produce the faith that he desires. When God seems to delay answering our prayers, for example, it may be because he has some ultimate, ultimate need in mind other than my present need. That's the plan of God.

17:35 I can have my plan, you know, but God had his own plan. And his plan is always for my ultimate good. Hey, that wasn't bad. We're already done with point one. I only have two left to go.

17:54 Verse 16. Then Thomas, also known as Didymus, said to the rest of the disciples, let us also go so that we may die with him. Well, that's encouraging, isn't it? Well, what a cheery thought. Now, on his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.

18:15 Now, Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet Him, but Mary stayed at home. Lord, Martha said to Jesus, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Notice what Martha says there. Ask yourself, have you ever had a similar thought about God?

18:44 Lord, if only you had, she says, if only you had been here, Lazarus would not have died. Then look down at verse 32. What does Mary say when she comes to see the Lord? Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. We hear this phrase, if only, a lot.

19:07 If only we could have got him to the doctor sooner. If only he hadn't gone driving that night. If only I had gone with him. If only she had got the surgery. If only she hadn't had that surgery.

19:24 Jesus wants us to rest assured that all of those circumstances in life, all of our if onlys, are already under his control. As one writer puts it, take all of your if onlys and write them down and draw a big circle around it, and call that circle the providence of God. There is nothing outside that circle. There's nothing that is outside of his control. You know, we don't know what causes led to Lazarus' death.

19:58 He may have contracted some disease, you know, or maybe he had some infection or had heart problems or whatever, but all those things are just the secondary causes of his death. The ultimate cause of Lazarus' death is God. God alone can take life or prolong life. He alone determines the length of my days. Things which are out of my control are totally in his hands.

20:26 And if God still has work for us to do, there is no sickness and no accident that is going to take me from this life. Even my death is in the hands of God. Romans chapter eight, what shall we say then to these things? If God before us, who can be against us? Right?

20:45 Who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not also freely give us all things? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or the sword? As it is written, for thy sake, we are killed all day long.

21:08 We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. No. In all these things, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, principalities, nor powers, nor things present, or things to come, or height, or depth, or any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Do you believe that?

21:43 Verse 21. Lord, Martha said to Jesus, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now, God will give you whatever you ask. Jesus said to her, your brother will rise again. And Martha answered, I know he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.

22:04 Martha's theology is pretty good. She understands what the scriptures say, that there is going to be a resurrection from the dead. But that's not what Jesus is talking about. And in verse 25, which I think is one of the most powerful verses in the entire Bible, Jesus says to her, I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even though they die, and whoever lives by believing in Me will never die.

23:02 I am. This is repeated throughout scripture. This is the fourth time in the Gospel of John that Jesus refers to himself by the very name of God, leaving no doubt about his claim, not just to be a good man and a good teacher, but to be God in the flesh. For there is no other name under heaven by which man can be saved, but at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Or in the words of the old hymn, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, there's just something about that name.

23:44 You know that song? Master, savior Jesus, like the fragrance after the rain. It's okay. You can sing along. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, let all heaven and earth proclaim.

24:03 Kings and kingdoms will all pass away, but

24:08 there's something about that name.

24:13 Jesus is declaring... That was very pretty, by the way. Thank you. Jesus is declaring his authority in no unquestionable terms that even death is within his providence. That when the day is done and all the cards are on the table and we are faced with our own mortality, that Jesus will be right there overcoming death for us and allowing us to live.

24:36 Job chapter 14, if a man dies, will he live again? Will he? Yes. Yes. We say he's going to live again.

24:46 We have the words of Jesus backed by miraculous power upon which we stand. Verse 32. When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. Where have you laid him?

25:12 He asked. Come and see, Lord, they replied. Jesus wept. In those two little words, we see the humanity of Jesus. This is not some far off, some distant God who does not relate to human suffering or sorrow.

25:30 He was definitely the Christ. He was the son of the living God, but he was also very much a man. He shed the same tears that we do. If you took a sample of Jesus' tears, I'm sure they would have the same chemical composition of my own. You know, some writers like to make Jesus out to be this kind of happy go lucky guy, flowing beard, you know, and sparkling eyes and a good sense of humor.

25:59 And, you know, Jesus is going to be my buddy. I'm going to slap him on the back, and we're going go to the Browns game together or something. But that is not the picture that the Bible paints of Jesus at all. In fact, the Bible refers to Jesus as a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Remember what the writer of Hebrews says, He was in always tempted like we are and yet without sin.

26:26 He has been touched with the feelings of our infirmities and he's experiencing sorrow because he's lost a friend. But there's more to it than that. This is not just the pain he feels at the loss of a loved one. And it's not just sympathy that he feels for Mary and Martha. Christ feels a far more transcendent pain.

26:50 He understands that he is surrounded by unbelievers in a nation of unbelievers who are all on a journey to eternal judgment because they will not receive him. Does that sound familiar? He looks down through human history and he sees the generations of souls that are lost due to their unbelief. I think this is a moment of great agony for the Savior. Maybe a little bit like his agony in the garden as he anticipates the cross.

27:22 Jesus is sharing not only in our sufferings, not only with the hearts and sorrows of people who are broken because they've lost a loved one, But he understands what sin has done to the world and what unbelief will do to those who reject him. Verse 36, then the Jews said, see how he loved him. But some of them said, could not he who opened the eyes of a blind man have kept this man from dying? Which I think is a really good question. Verse 38, Jesus once more deeply moved came to the tomb.

28:38 Here we're going to see the power of Jesus. We're going to see the power of Jesus. He's been dead for four days, Martha said. You know, as I was doing a little research for this this sermon, I I discovered that the Jews did not embalm bodies. Now, I should have known that because when Christ's own body is taken off the cross, what happens?

28:59 We've got Joseph of Arimathea and we have Nicodemus. Right? And, they kind of... They pour spices on the body and they wrap it in linen cloths and they they put it into a cave. But, there's no embalming, not like the Egyptians did.

29:11 Right? So, Lazarus has been in the tomb four days and without becoming graphic, it's a pretty gross situation at that point. And Martha's thinking, he's been dead four days. And I think, well, would it have been easier for Jesus to raise him from the dead if he'd only been dead one day or one hour? Or would it be harder for Jesus to raise him from the dead if he'd been dead for a year or a hundred years?

29:40 I I don't think so. I think death is death. Dead is dead. And the Lord has the same power over death yesterday as he has today, as he has tomorrow. By the way, did you know that the death rate today is exactly the same as it was in Jesus' time?

30:01 Despite all of our medical and technological advances, the death rate stands at a hundred percent. You got a hundred percent. Right? It is appointed every man to die once and then the judgment. Not only is everybody going to die, but everybody will enter into eternity.

30:20 And everybody will stand before the throne of Christ. Now, are some people who want to ignore Jesus in this life, and they're very good at doing that. But nobody will be able to ignore him in the next life. You can ignore Jesus all you want today, but the day is coming when you will not be able to ignore him anymore. The Bible tells us that Jesus alone has the keys to death and Hades.

30:48 Of course, only the person who has the keys can unlock the doors. I happen to have a lot of keys. I I mean, I got... I've got keys to my house. I've got a key to my...

30:59 To office at LCC. I've got a key to my office at Michigan State. I have a key to the Math Building at Michigan State. I got a key to my mom's house. I got a key to my in laws house.

31:10 I got keys to two cars. I even have a key to my shed. And that means I can let you into any of those places. You want to go in my shed? Hey, come on over.

31:20 I'll let you in. Right? I got a bunch of junk in there. You can organize it for me. Just let me know when you're ready.

31:25 I got the key to the shed. I will let you in. But, I do not have the key to unlock death. No. I cannot open that door.

31:37 If you want to pass through death's door, you got to know the guy who has the right key. And there is only one person with the keys to death, and that is Jesus Christ. He alone can say to those on his right, welcome into my kingdom, and to those on his left, depart from me, you workers of iniquity. When I die, I want to know the keeper of that key. Verse 41.

32:03 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I know that you always hear me, but I say this for the benefit of the people standing here that they may believe that you sent me. When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice. This is one of only two or three times where we hear Jesus calling in a loud voice.

32:25 Lazarus, come out. And the dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, take off these grave clothes and let him go. I think it was Augustine, fourth century maybe, who said it was important that Jesus called Lazarus by name or else everybody in the cemetery would have come out. That's the kind of power he has.

33:01 Jesus is calling for Lazarus and he's basically saying, this way out. You know, he's still calling you today by name. He is still calling us. Sometimes Jesus calls to us with a loud voice, as he does in this passage. And sometimes softly and tenderly, Jesus is calling, calling for you and for me.

33:22 But the call is still there. It's still personal. It's still by name. Jesus is saying to you, this way out. Come out of that tomb you've been in all these days.

33:34 Come into a better life, an eternal glory. And that's the question. Are we going to listen to that call this morning? Are we going to trust in the only one who has the power over life and death, who commands the dead to rise again, and who himself is the very embodiment of resurrection. You know, of course, Lazarus surely went on to die.

34:46 I still have a page left to go. And found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, they have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb and we don't know where they have put him. Peter and the other disciples started out for the tomb.

35:06 They were both running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He stooped and looked in and he saw the linen wrappings lying there. But he did not go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings.

35:27 Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in and saw and believed. For until then, they had not understood the scriptures that said that Jesus must rise from the dead. You know, at the start of this message, I said, when I pass through death's door, I want to be with the one person who has the power over death. With the guy who has been there and done that. With the man who has the keys to eternal life.

36:01 For those of us that have put our trust in Christ, death is just a moment in which I pass from one life to the next. As many of you know, the last couple of weeks have been fairly emotional ones for Megan and I. New baby, and then as as also many of you know, my grandfather went to be with the Lord a week ago. But the resurrection of Christ, the fact that he alone has this power over death, gives us the courage to walk through times like these. Listen.

36:36 I will tell you a mystery. We will not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. In a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.

36:51 For that

36:51 trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperishable and we will all be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with imperishable and the mortal will put on immortality. And when this perishable has been clothed with imperishable and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true, Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?

37:22 The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. And that victory is available to you today. Yes, it is. This Easter, this morning, victory over death and life everlasting.

37:56 We're just gonna sing. This song is called Because He Lives while the guys get this set up. Wake up. Wake up, guys. Here we go.

38:16 I told my son he can sleep through the service, but he's the only one allowed to do that. Alright? You know this song? Because He Lives, I Can Face Tomorrow.

38:58 God sent his son. They called him Jesus. He came to love, heal and forgive. He lived and died to buy my pardon. An empty grave is there to prove my savior lives because he lives I can face tomorrow because he lives all fear is gone because I know he holds the future And life is worth living just because he lives.

40:01 How sweet to hold a new born baby and feel the pride and joy he gives. But greater still, the calm assurance this child can face uncertain days because he lives I can face tomorrow because he lives all fear is gone because I know he holds the future. And life is worth living just because he lives. And then one day, I'll cross the river. I'll fight life's fine.

41:16 No war with pain. And then as death gives way to victory I'll see the lights of glory and I'll know he lives because he lives I confess tomorrow because he lives because I know I know he holds the future and life is worth the living just because he lives.

42:13 Let's pray. Oh, Lord, we're just overflowing with joy this Easter morning, That the thought that death itself has been conquered. That the day is coming when you will call each of us by name into your eternal and heavenly kingdom. Lord, we know that because you live, not only can we face tomorrow, but we also will live. We just pray that your Holy Spirit would touch each of our hearts today.

42:58 Lord, if there is anyone here who does not know you, pray that you would knock a little louder on the door of their heart. We ask that we go forth from this place that we would carry your word with us. Live it out every day as soldiers of the cross.